walking through the advent together: day 21

When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.

So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,Are not the least among the rulers of Judah;For out of you shall come a RulerWho will shepherd My people Israel.’” (Matthew 2:3-6)

This Herod the king was Herod the Great, a king most of us have heard horrible stories about. He was a surely a great man and a great ruler in some ways; but we hear of him murdering many of his family members. So it is no wonder that when Herod was troubled, so was all Jerusalem with him. Yet, this tells us of the greatness of our Almighty God come down. Spurgeon writes, “Jesus of Nazareth is so potent a factor in the world of mind that, no sooner is he there in his utmost weakness, a now-born King, than he begins to reign. Before he mounts the throne, friends bring him presents, and his enemies compass his death.”

Here, we also see the chief priests and scribes’ first encounter with Jesus, and it is such a sad thing to see, that these people knew Christ would be born in Bethlehem of Judea, that He would be the Ruler of the people of Israel — and yet, they did nothing about this information. They did not go seeking for the Messiah. They did not try to find out more about Jesus, though they knew He was to be born right there in Bethlehem, a town right next to Jerusalem.

Unto us a Child is born, the King of kings and Lord of lords. So today, let us set our eyes on Him, our hearts willing to seek Him in everything.

I'm Ronja (pronounced RON-yah). Follower of Jesus, working on a Master's Degree in Speech & Language Therapy. I live in southern Finland. I'm fueled by coffee & grace. I am here to encourage and to share the light of grace with the beloved children of God.